Senatorial bet Neri Colmenares admitted that being branded a leftist has become a liability running for national post.

The former Bayan Muna representative said people easily throw the communist tag against all individuals who oppose anti-people polices of government.

“When I ask people anong ginawa ko which leads you to think that komunista ako? Ang sabi nila kasi pro-China ka. But when I tell them that I filed case with the Supreme Court in 2008 against Gloria Arroyo for the joint exploration with China, wala naman silang masabi,” said Colmenares, who lost in the 2016 senatorial elections.

But Colmenares said a number of people have come to “look beyond the labels” after they realized I was the one who pushed fo the Social Security System pension law and the end to “endo” or labor contractualization. “I think na-transcend na iyan except may trolls pa rin diyan na biglang sasabihin (komunista ka),” said Colmenares.

Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief, Director General Oscar Albayalde on Thursday hailed the Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) for rescuing a Chinese-Australian national from his alleged kidnappers in Makati City.

Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief, Director General Oscar Albayalde on Thursday hailed the Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) for rescuing a Chinese-Australian national from his alleged kidnappers in Makati City.

PNP Spokesman, Senior Supt. Bernard Banac said Albayalde congratulated the PNP AKG under Chief Supt. Glenn Dumalo for their ‘accomplishment’ as the AKG also arrested the alleged kidnappers.

“We thank the public for their constant support to our campaign against criminality. The PNP will remain steadfast to its mandate to enforce the law and keep the peace and order in our communities,” Banac in a statement.

Banac said the kidnap victim was identified as Jianting Chen who was reportedly kidnapped by four Chinese nationals on Feb. 19 in Pasay City.

Chen’s friend, William Choi from Hong Kong and a certain Rachel Ball from Australia reported the incident to the police after the suspects demanded 200,000 RMB (P1.5 million) ransom payment from the victim’s family.

According to reports, the suspects even threatened to cut Chen’s finger if the family refuses to pay ransom.

Banac said the suspects identified as Xue Zhao (female) and Hao Meng Zhen, Zhao Ping Zheng, and You Hua were arrested during the rescue operation at 9387A Calantas St, Brgy. San Antonio, Makati City.

The suspects, reportedly members of a loan shark syndicate, are now under custody of PNP AKG and inquest proceedings will be conducted before the Department of Justice. (PNA)

House Deputy Speaker Pia Cayetano on Thursday hailed the passage of the Expanded Maternity Leave Law, which provides for 105 days of paid maternity leave to Filipino working mothers.

In a statement, the senatorial candidate expressed her gratitude to President Rodrigo Duterte for signing the measure, “giving working mothers more time to recover and to take care of their newborn after giving birth.”

“This measure is an acknowledgement of the dual role of women in society: as members of the work force and as mothers,” she said.

Cayetano was the principal author and sponsor of expanded maternity bill in the House.

“This maternity leave bill was like a baby that’s been waiting to be born. I’ve been working on this for many years, since I was in the Senate,” she said.

With the passage of the new law, working mothers can now enjoy an extended maternity leave from 60 to 105 days.

“As a working mother, I have experienced the 60-day maternity leave under the previous law. I know that the additional days will be a great help to hardworking Filipino mothers and their newborns,” Cayetano said.

The Taguig representative thanked Duterte for “listening to her position on the urgency of enacting the measure for women workers, and for eventually backing the proposal.”

The President had said during his endorsement of Cayetano at the PDP-Laban kickoff rally in Bulacan last week that he would always listen to the lady lawmaker’s advice in addressing the problems of the country.

The 5.65-kilometer North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) Harbor Link Segment 10 is set to open on February 26, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) announced on Wednesday.

DPWH Secretary Mark Villar said once the elevated expressway is opened, the travel time from Circumferential Road 3 (C3) to NLEX will only be 10 minutes.

“We are glad that this much-awaited traffic decongestion project will soon be open to our motorists. With this new road, travel time between C3 and NLEX will only take 10 minutes,” he said in a statement.

Traversing the cities of Valenzuela, Malabon, and Caloocan, the NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 is seen to ease traffic bottlenecks as it diverts 30,000 vehicles daily away from the busy streets of Metro Manila.

It will also facilitate the efficient delivery of goods as cargo trucks will have 24/7 direct access from the port area to the provinces in northern Luzon and vice versa.

This alternative route will enable travelers from Manila to Central and North Luzon to have shorter travel time, as they can head straight to the NLEX bypassing Edsa and the Balintawak Toll Plaza. The next phase of this project is the 2.6-km section from C3 Road, Caloocan City to R10, Navotas City.

Along with the full opening of the NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 is the partial opening of the new Caloocan Interchange — the fourth gateway of NLEX to Metro Manila, after Balintawak, Mindanao Avenue, and Karuhatan.

The new Caloocan Interchange serves as the point, where the NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10, the C3-R-10 section, and the NLEX Connector will converge. This junction is located along the PNR tracks in 5th Avenue/C3 Road in Caloocan City.

Meanwhile, Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) chairman Manuel Pangilinan said they are very pleased with the government’s help in speeding up important infrastructure projects.

“Apart from our team’s commitment to support the administration’s ‘Build Build Build’ program, the government’s help in ramping up the acquisition of right-of-way made us deliver this vital infrastructure which aims to bolster development and ease traffic congestion in the country,” he added.

Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) president Rodrigo Franco noted that “NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 is just one of Metro Pacific’s expansion projects geared towards providing further convenience to motorists and bringing more opportunities in nearby cities and provinces.”

The undertaking will also pave the way for the NLEX Connector, which is expected to decongest major thoroughfares and improve linkages between the north and south. (PNA)

Quezon City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte on Wednesday expressed her support for a one-week delay of the closure of the Tandang Sora flyover to conduct more information drive on alternative routes, saying motorists are not yet fully aware of the closure and the rerouting scheme.

Quezon City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte on Wednesday expressed her support for a one-week delay of the closure of the Tandang Sora flyover to conduct more information drive on alternative routes, saying motorists are not yet fully aware of the closure and the rerouting scheme.

“I think there should be a delay because we found out that many people are still uninformed of this. So we’re asking if one-week postponement is okay. We want to assure that everything is ironed out,” Belmonte said in an interview.

“Marami pa pala kasing kailangan i-disseminate sa tao so baka hindi sapat ‘yung three days. Kung hindi naman pumayag si DOTr (Department of Transportation) Secretary Tugade There are still many things needed to disseminate to the people so, we will still work with the timeframe, we’ll work overtime to inform our people,” she added.

The vice mayor was referring to a previous proposal for a three-day delay of the closure.

Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) general manager Jose Garcia said he would endorse the one-week delay to the DOTr.

The MMDA recently announced the demolition of the Tandang Sora flyover to make way for the construction of the Metro Rail Transit-7 (MRT-7)project,
which will cause the closure of the Tandang Sora intersection for two years.

The Quezon City local government assured the public that the closure of the flyover will ease the traffic in Quezon City in the long run, and the anticipated discomfort will only be temporary.

“I want to assure our people that this discomfort is only temporary. It’s a momentary discomfort to pave the way for the full implementation of the construction of the MRT-7. It will ease our worsening traffic that we have been experiencing in our city for the past several years,” Belmonte said.

The Quezon City Council held a public consultation, where it addressed issues concerning the closure of the Tandang Sora flyover, which would start on Feb. 23 and is expected to worsen the traffic situation along Commonwealth Avenue and nearby roads.

“In the spirit of transparency, I want all of this to be presented to our people so that our city government can work with you towards easing the discomfort that we are all anticipating to happen and will affect our people in the coming years,” Belmonte said.

“Our objective is to cooperate together, to work with one another because in the long term, we know these changes will be affecting us for the greater good of our city and of our nation. And we are fully cooperative of your endeavors,” she added. (PNA)

Akbayan party-list Rep. Tom Villarin on Wednesday demanded the resignation of National Youth Commission chair Ronald Cardema after the latter proposed to withdraw the scholarships of students joining rallies, especially those in leftist groups.

Akbayan party-list Rep. Tom Villarin on Wednesday demanded the resignation of National Youth Commission chair Ronald Cardema after the latter proposed to withdraw the scholarships of students joining rallies, especially those in leftist groups.

“It’s high time that we demand for his resignation,” the Magnificent 7 lawmaker said in a statement.

Villarin said Cardema’s statement “betrays the qualifications of a public official who wants government to adopt and enforce his ideas no matter how idiotic they are.”

“Free tertiary education is now a matter of right under RA 10931 given to all students, not just a select few regardless of political views,” he said.

Villarin said Cardena’s proposal of taking away scholarships of anti-government student protesters “exposes his lack of qualifications and is a betrayal of the public’s trust to whom he owe his position, not President Duterte.”

Cardema earlier called on President Rodrigo Duterte to issue an executive order “removing the government scholarships of all anti-government scholars, specifically those students who are allied with the leftist CPP-NPA-NDF.”

In a statement, Cardema said such actions of student demonstrators are tantamount “fighting the majority of the Filipino People and also not fulfilling their roles as the expected breadwinners who will uplift their families and hope in strengthening the country.”

The Kabataan party-list on Wednesday said National Youth Commission chair Ronald Cardema should review the role of student protest movements in Philippine history after the latter proposed to withdraw the scholarships of students joining rallies, especially those in leftist groups.

The Kabataan party-list on Wednesday said National Youth Commission chair Ronald Cardema should review the role of student protest movements in Philippine history after the latter proposed to withdraw the scholarships of students joining rallies, especially those in leftist groups.

“Please review your history, Mr. Chair. Students and youth have been in the forefront of the fight for human rights, justice and freedom,” Kabataan party-list Rep. Sarah Elago said in a statement.

“Unlike you, we will not let another dictator in Malacañang or even in the NYC to step on the rights of our youth and the people,” she said.

Elago said freedom to protest is a “constitutionally guaranteed and celebrated right.”

“In fact, the free tuition that the students in state universities enjoy now is a victory brought about by protests. The right to protest and the right to education are both fundamental rights inherent to all and both shall be protected and upheld by the state,” she said.

“Only a fascist regime and its puppets like Cardema will hold these rights in contrary to each other,” said Elago.

“It is alarming that Cardema, a supposed ‘youth commissioner,’ wants to discriminate on our right to education and trample on the youth’s victory by denying us our rights both to free education and free speech,” she added.

“Mr. Cardema, clearly, you know nothing about the Constitution nor anything about history. History shows that rallies and protests have won the people many rights we experience today,” Elago said.

In fact, she added, “the right to have elections, with which Cardema is so busy to campaign candidates, have been won through protests centuries ago.”

“We have won back our democratic rights from a dictator in a massive protest dubbed as EDSA People Power which we will commemorate a few days from now,” Elago said.

Cardema earlier called on President Rodrigo Duterte to issue an executive order “removing the government scholarships of all anti-government scholars, specifically those students who are allied with the leftist CPP-NPA-NDF.”

In a statement, Cardema said such actions of student demonstrators are tantamount “fighting the majority of the Filipino People and also not fulfilling their roles as the expected breadwinners who will uplift their families and hope in strengthening the country.”

Former Quezon Rep. Erin Tañada on Wednesdy expressed puzzlement over President Rodrigo Duterte's veto of the Coconut Trust Fund bill, a priority social justice measure, saying the executive branch could have worked with Congress to modify it according to his wishes.

Former Quezon Rep. Erin Tañada on Wednesdy expressed puzzlement over President Rodrigo Duterte’s veto of the Coconut Trust Fund bill, a priority social justice measure, saying the executive branch could have worked with Congress to modify it according to his wishes.

“The executive has all the opportunity to say what shape, size, color it wants the bill to finally look like,” the Otso Diretso senatorial candidate said in a statement.

“In fact, an enrolled bill was scheduled for signing some time last year but after it already sent signals that some provisions need further work, Congress withdrew the bill from Malacanang and sent it back to bicam,” Tañada said.

“Sino ba natutulog sa pansitan dito?” he asked.

“The coco farmers definitely were not sleeping,” Tañada said.

According to the former lawmaker, the early version of the bill, “which is actually what my father and I worked on and filed as legislators earlier, vests the management and utilization of the fund to a Trust Fund Committee under the Office of the President, cognizant of the institutional problems that beset the PCA (Philippine Coconut Authority).”

“The coco farmers too expressed dissent on a free for all access to the benefits of the fund rather than limit it to small coco farmers whose land is 5 hectares and below,” he said.

Operatives of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) arrested Franciscan priest, Father Kenneth Hendricks, over the molestation of at least 50 people, mostly altar boys.

NCRPO chief, Police Dir. Guillermo Eleazar, personally served the five arrest warrants against Hendricks around 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Bureau of Immigration Detention Cell in Camp Bagong Diwa, Bicutan, Taguig City, where the priest has been detained since his arrest last Dec. 5, 2018.

Eleazar said warrants were issued by Judge Constantino Esber of the Biliran Regional Trial Court over charges of acts of lasciviousness and child abuse.

He said the implementation of the warrants of arrest was a joint effort of the Regional Special Operations Unit -NCRPO, the BI Fugitive Search Unit and the US Department of Homeland Security.

“Available information reveals that the Franciscan priest has molested more than 50 people, mostly altar boys as young as seven years old. The new victims were encouraged to openly accuse the priest after learning that he was arrested. They were afraid to come out in the open immediately because of grave threats from the priest,” Eleazar said.

“This arrest is another testament to the truism that the long arm of the law will always catch up with criminals. It may have taken some time for Hendricks to be indicted and arrested, but at the end of then day, he is where he should be – in jail,” he added.

Hendricks was arrested on December 5 by virtue of an arrest warrant issued by Stephanie Bowman, US magistrate judge of the US District Court for the District of Ohio, on November 11, on charges of “engaging in illicit sex with a minor in a foreign country, punishable by fines and/or up to 30 years in prison”.

Hendricks arrived in the Philippines from Cincinnati, Ohio, USA in 1968 and was ordained as a priest in the Franciscan Order and practiced his vocation at the St. Isidore the Worker Chapel in Talustosan Village in Biliran province. (PNA)

The Rice Tariffication Law signed by President Rodrigo Duterte on Feb. 14, 2019, amends the 20-year-old Agricultural Tariffication Act of 1996 and replaces the quantitative restrictions (QR) on rice imports with tariff. It will allocate P10 billion as safety nets for farmers affected by the influx of rice imports.